Photographer Barry Feinstein's original cover proof for the front of Barbra Streisand's 1970 album Stoney End, showing the versatile entertainer seated on an antique sofa in the back of a red pickup truck in the Mojave Desert, looking toward Sunrise Mountain, with two red chairs in the background. The color semi-glossy 16 x 17.5 photograph is affixed to its original 20 x 24 board, with printer's mark labels applied to the mount's borders. Annotated below in pencil with a crop mark defining the image for resizing to the standard album cover width of 12 3/8˝. Labels from Ted Staidle & Associates Photographic Color Reproduction, Los Angeles, are applied to the reverse and a protective paper overlay. Originating from Feinstein's estate, this album cover proof was sent to Columbia for press and then returned to Feinstein. In fine condition.
On the album itself, the image is a slightly closer crop than in the proof, as defined by the markings on the mount. In this original proof version, we are able to see more of the clouds in the sky and more of the gravel road, and the truck and chair do not bleed off the edge of the frame. Conceived and created by Barry Feinstein and his frequent collaborator Tom Wilkes, Feinstein volunteered his own pickup truck (with custom New York license plate "11-BF") for the shoot, which they set up in the Mojave during one of Streisand's Las Vegas residencies.
Wilkes told a Streisand biographer: 'It was a dirt road in the desert, surrounded by mountains. Someone—probably Barbra—suggested we have antique furniture placed on the truck. So, we rented a red velvet couch and some chairs. Jay York, a friend of ours, went out and rounded up the stuff for us. We went out to the desert early in the morning and set everything up. That afternoon Barbra arrived in a limo. I remember it was winter and very cold. She put up with a lot of different shootings—in the cab of the truck, on the back of the truck, and on the road. She was a real trouper. She kept jumping up and down, and putting her hands under her arms, because it was cold, real cold. She never complained; there was no star stuff. Afterwards she invited us all back to her house. She had this rented house in Vegas, and we hung out there for two or three hours. She fed us and gave us drinks and made sure we were comfortable. Later, Barry and I picked the shot for the cover and both Barbra and Richard Perry agreed on it. There were no problems whatsoever. It was a great experience.'
Stoney End was positioned to be Barbra Streisand's pop-rock breakthrough, featuring cover versions of songs by contemporary singer-songwriters like Laura Nyro, Randy Newman, Harry Nilsson, and Joni Mitchell. The album was a great success, hitting number 10 on the Billboard 200 and eventually going platinum with sales in excess of one million copies.
